Gulag as the inevitability of the development of the Soviet system (the 1920s)

The paper reveals the main problems and prerequisites to formation of the GULAG (Chief Administration of Corrective Labour Camps) in the 1920s. The specificity of this period of history is described in detail. The author utilizes an extensive material of letters, diaries and other private sources. The analysis of statistical data allows to trace the main formation trends of the totalitarian system of Stalinism. On the example of SLON (Solovetsky Special Purpose Camp), the author shows characteristic features of the GULAG system.